Fabric spreading machine with web threading means



March 31, 1970 5, STUMPF ET AL 3,503,605

FABRIC SPREADING MACHINE WITH WEB THREADING MEANS Filed May 6 1968 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 4 SheetsSheet 2 G. o. STUMPFY ET AL FABRIC SPREADING MACHINE WITH WEB THREADING MEANS Filed May 6 1968 March 31, 1970 March 31, 1970 STUMPF ET AL 1 3,503,605 I FABRIC SPREADING MACHINE WITH WEB THREADING MEANS Filed May a 1968 4 Sheets-Sheet s FABRIC SPREADING MACHINE WITH WEB THREADING MEANS Filed May 6, 1968 March 31, 1970 s. o. S TUMI5F ETAL 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 United States Patent 3,503,605 FABRIC SPREADING MACHINE WITH WEB THREADING MEANS Gunter 0. Stumpf, Mehrstetten, Kreis Munsingen, and Hermann Eppinger, Munsingen, Germany, assignors to Bullmerwerk Karl Bullmer, Mehrstetten, Kreis Munsingen, Germany Filed May 6, 1968, Ser. No. 726,700 1 Claims priority, application Germany, May 31, 1967, B 92,810 Int. Cl. B65h 29/46, 23/00 US. Cl. 270-31 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A fabric spreading machine having a reciprocally movable carriage carrying a roll of fabric to be unwound and a pivotable guide bar which serves to introduce the free end of the roll of fabric to the space between an idler and an unwinding roll carried by the carriage to cause the free end to be engaged and transported by the unwinding roll.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to a fabric spreading machine oi the type having a spreader carriage reciprocally movable on a table, and supporting a bale of fabric goods to be spread out, an unwinding roll driven in synchronism with the carriage-propulsion drive and an associated rotatable idler roll for conferring an appropriate angle of wrap of the fabric on the unwinding roll.

In known fabric spreading machines of the aforementioned kind, there exists some difficulty, in initiating the spreading operation, in which the beginning of the fabric run hanging down from the bale must be introduced between the unwinding roll and the idler roll. If this operation is performed manually, the operator runs the risk of getting his fingers caught between the rolls and consequent injury.

An object of the invention is to provide suitable means for mechanically introducing the downhanging fabric into the space between the unwinding roll and idler roll, such means being easily operated and excluding any danger of injury to the operating personnel.

According to the invention, a guide bar is supported on the spreader carriage, essentially parallel to the unwinding roll, for movement between an idle or inoperative position and an operative position in which the guide bar is moved into the space between the unwinding roll and the idler roll in such a manner that it carries the downhanging free end of the fabric run into such space.

By moving the guide bar into said space, the fabric run is advantageously placed in contact with the unwinding roll, so that by slightly rotating the unwinding roll, for example by hand, the fabric run is carried along by the unwinding roll until it hangs down from the unwinding roll on the side away from the idler roll, whereby it is in position for beginning the spreading operation. The axle of the idler roll located in proximity to the unwinding roll is supported to advantage at approximately the same elevation as the axle of the unwinding roll.

In the design of the fabric spreading machine according to the invention, the operator, for the purpose of threading the end of the fabric run around the unwinding roll, need only move the proposed guide bar forward from its idle position with one hand while slightly rotating the unwinding roll with the other hand. This involves no risk whatsoever to the operator of sustaining injury by getting his fingers caught between the rolls.

The invention further contemplates that the guide bar have a generally L-shaped cross-section and be pivotable around an axis extending parallel to the unwinding roll. The pivotal movement of the guide bar permits a particularly simple operation for introducing the fabric run onto tthe unwinding roll. 7

In further accordance with the invention, the guide bar comprises an elongated strip of sheet steel which is bent to the L-shaped cross-section, the strip being attached to the spreading carriage by levers at both side edges of the strip. The guide bar can also be constituted of other suitable material, as for example a plastic material.

Apart from the proposed tiltable arrangement of the guide bar, there is also contemplated within the scope of the invention an embodiment with a slidably arranged guide bar. The essential feature is that the guide bar be movable into the space between the unwinding roll and the idler roll while carrying the downhanging end of the fabric run therewith.

According to a further feature of the invention, the guide bar is operated by a handle extending laterally outwards of the spreader carriage. The operation is greatly facilitated by this arrangement and virtually eliminates all risk of injury.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a spreader carriage according to the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view through a guide bar on the carriage in its idle position;

FIGURE 3 shows the guide bar of FIG. 2 in an operative position while the fabric run is still hanging down; and

FIGURE 4 shows the guide bar of FIG. 2 also in operative position, but with the fabric run entrained by the unwinding roll.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION In the drawing, a spreader carriage is generally designated by 1. By means of profiled casters 3 arranged on a frame 2 of the spreader carriage 1, the spreader carriage 1 can travel back and forth on rails 4 of a spreading table 5. A bale 7 of fabric to be unwound is rotatably supported on a bracket 6 assembled on the frame 2 of the spreader carriage 1. The fabric is drawn from bale 7 in the form of a downhanging fabric run 8.

Moreover, there are supported on the spreader carriage 1, a driven unwinding roll 9 as Well as an idler roll 10 associated therewith. The idler roll 10 serves the purpose of obtaining the necessary angle of wrap of the fabric run 8 around the driven unwinding roll 9. The unwinding roll 9 is driven in known manner in synchronism with the propulsion drive of the spreader carriage 1. For greater clarity, details of this driving mechanism are not shown in the drawing.

According to invention, a guide bar 11 is supported by the longitudinal beam of the frame 2 of the spreader carriage, which beam also supports the unwinding roll 9 and the idler roll 10. The guide bar 11 is supported on the longitudinal beam of frame 2 on a side of the idler roll 10 opposite the roll 9. The guide bar 11 is shown in an idle position in FIGS. 1 and 2. In FIG. 1 the frame 2 of the spreader carriage 1 has been broken away in the area of the guide bar 11 in order to make the same visible.

A handle 12 (FIG. 1), in the form of a hand crank, is coupled to a shaft 13 supporting the guide bar 11. Thereby the shaft 13 can be turned to turn the guide bar 11. The shaft 13 extends parallel to the shafts of rolls 9 and 10, and thus by turning handle 12, the guide bar 11 can be rotated from its idling position as shown in FIG. 2 in the direction of arrow 19 (FIG. 3) to entrain the downhanging fabric run 8 into the space between unwinding roll 9 and idler roll 10, so that it will be in the position shown in FIG. 3. The unwinding roll 9 is provided in a.

known manner with a friction surface 16, so that when roll 9 is slightly rotated, it entrains the fabric run 8 and advances it in the direction of the arrow 17 shown in FIG. 4 until the run 8, after passing under the idler roll and over the unwinding roll 9 will wrap over the unwinding roll 9 and hang down on the side away from the idler roll 10, as shown in FIG. 1. In the same manner as the unwinding roll, the idler roll 10 may also be provided with a friction surface 18.

When the fabric run 8 attains the position on the unwinding roll as shown in FIG. 4, the guide bar 11 can be retracted into its idle position as represented in FIGS. 1 and 2,

The guide bar 11 includes a strip of thin sheet steel bent in the general shape of an L7 The juncture of the branches of the L of strip 20 is of generally rounded shape to conform to the surface of the idler roll when the guide bar 11 is brought to its operative position. Thus when the free end 14 of the strip 20 is introduced into the space between rolls 9 and 10, the downhanging run 8 of fabric will be carried into proximity with the idler roll as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. It is to be noted that the free end 14 is located at a level above a plane passing through the axes of rolls 9 and 10 which insures sufiicient contact of the fabric with roll 8 and consequent engagement and transport of the fabric from theposition in FIG. 3 to that in FIG. 4. The strip 20 is elongated and at its side edges, the strip is rigidly secured with a respective lever 21. Each lever 21 is coupled to shaft 13 for rotation therewith by the turning of handle 12.

As can be seen in FIG. 1, the grip of handle 12 extends laterally outwards of the spreader carriage 1, so that the guide bar can be moved, without any risk of injury to the operator between its operating and idle positions. c

The arrangement according to the invention has the advantage, that the area between the rolls 9 and 10' is al ways free and readily inspectableduring operation, since the guide bar can be moved-back into its idle position, as soon as the fabric run 8 has been entrained by the un winding roll 9. 1

What is claimed is: v

1. In a fabric spreading machine having a reciprocally movable carriage carrying a rotatable roll of fabric and spaced idler and drive rolls on which the fabric passes in succession as it is unwound from the roll, an improvement comprising a guide bar and means supporting the guide bar from the carriage for movement between an operative position in which the guide bar is introduced between the idler and drive rolls and an inoperative position, in which the guide bar is withdrawn from between the rolls, said guide bar being supported from the car .riage at a position relative to the idler anddrive rolls to carry downhanging fabric adjacent the idler roll into the space between the idler roll and drive roll so that the fabric can be engaged by said drive roll and drawn thereover. I I

2. An improvement as claimed in claim 1 wherein said guide bar is supported on the carriage on a side of the idler roll opposite the drive roll.

3. An improvement as claimed in claim 1 wherein said means which supports the guide bar from the carriage comprises means pivotably supporting the guide bar for movement between said operative and inoperating positions.

4. An improvement as claimed in claim 3 wherein said guide bar has a free end which is inserted into the space between the idler and drive rolls when the guide bar is pivotably moved to said operative position.

5. An improvement as claimed in claim 4 wherein the free end of the guide bar passes into the space between the idler and drive rolls to a point beyond a plane passing through the axes of the idler and drive rolls.

6. An improvement as claimed in claim 3 wherein said guide bar includes a thin strip member of generally L- shape which enables the free end of the guide bar to pass into the space between the drive roll and idler roll while the fabric is carried into proximity with said idler roll.

7. An improvement "as claimed in claim 6 wherein said thin strip member includes a rounded portion at the juncture of the branches of the L for conforming to the surface of the idler roll in said operative position.

8. An improvement as claimed in claim 6 wherein said thin strip is elongated and has opposite ends, said guide bar including a lever rigidly secured to said strip at each end thereof.

9. An improvement as claimed in claim 8 wherein the levers are mounted from the carriage for conjoint pivotable movement.

outwards of the carriage.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,181,859 5/1965 Sayles 27031 EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner PAUL V. WILLIAMS, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 226-91 

